Leigh Deleonardo dressed her first customer, Barbie, when she was just seven years old. With time and perseverance, her skills developed, as did her clientele. After graduating from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1984, Leigh launched her collection of women's suits and separates, selling to fine specialty shops and department stores such as Nordstrom, Saks, and Marshall Field's. But Leigh felt she had become a fashion manufacturer rather than a clothing designer. She decided to embrace a slower pace with small production that allowed creative freedom and strong customer relationships. She opened her first designer consortium, Made To fit in 1994 which she closed 4 years later to focus on her family. In 2013 she opened Union Handmade, another consortium featuring primarily local designers who share a love of timeless design and limited production.

Leigh approaches clothing design as a problem solver, striving to unite seemingly incompatible themes: contemporary but timeless; comfortable but flattering; simple but special; reasonably priced but beautifully sewn and made of fine imported fabrics. The result is a classic but exciting collection of dresses and separates that are easy to wear year after year.

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